(VALLETTA) - An Italian fishing boat rescued 26 migrants, including a 12-month-old child, after their vessel capsized off Malta, and a French warship sent a helicopter to the scene, Maltese authorities said Friday.

Another migrant was still missing after the incident late Thursday, while a pregnant woman among those saved miscarried aboard the fishing boat Gambero, an armed forces statement said.

The helicopter from the frigate Germinal took a medical team to the Gambero to aid the pregnant woman and another woman with a disclocated shoulder. The 21 men, four women and the child, whose origin was not stated, were later transferred to a Maltese patrol boat to be taken to the island.

Malta, the smallest state in the European Union, has found itself sheltering hundreds of people from Africa and Asia attempting to seek a better life in Europe by crossing the Mediterranean aboard unseaworthy vessels.

Text and Picture Copyright 2008 AFP. All other Copyright 2008 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable.